Tradewinds December 2016 CC Web Final

Agricultural Happenings

Agricultural Happenings in Northeastern North Carolina Northeastern North Carolina Coalition of Minority Farmers and Landowners. I was born and raised in Pasquotank County. My parents were lifelong farmers. We lived on a large farm that was cultivated and managed by my father. I lead the life of a farm girl and it was one of healthfulness, profi tability and happiness. My father accomplished very much with few assets available. He grew two and three crops during the course of a year on the acres he had. We had cows, chickens and every animal you can think of. Apple, pear and grape vines were always plentiful. We had a generous garden that always kept our kitchen table well supplied. I can’t remember a day I was hungry. That was a blessing. I have always been fascinated with growing of fresh vegetables. Upon graduating from high school, my college education was in the Health Care fi eld. One of the most important concepts in my health education was that healthy food was an integral part of good health. From Nursing, to nutrition, from nutrition to counseling, working with the military in Central America, as a Health Care Specialist and obtaining a degree as a Clinical Psychologist; each discipline has taught me that you are what you eat. We know that “Agriculture” is the cultivation of land for profitable growth and rising of livestock. Our small farmers prepare their land by planting their crops, and harvesting them for production. The word “agriculture” was discovered in the 15th century, however, the process of tending and cultivating land to grow food for survival has been in existence since the beginning of time. The Northeastern North Carolina Coalition of Small Minority Farmers and Landowners was designed to provide an organizational system to assist a multicultural society of Landowners and farmers with business opportunities, education, marketing strategies, policy development and global marketing skills. I will be working with many colleagues including Dr. Hortense Dodo; Scientist, Dr. Anthony Emekalam; pharmacist, Sheryl Bradford; Researcher, and Warren Green in growing and making “clean food” available for everyone. By: Shirley B. Brown, CEO earecoman By: Mary Cherry President, Encore Theatre Company A lot of people think they can’t do community theatre for a variety of reasons-they’re too shy, or they can’t act or sing. Trust me-if you try it once, you’ll be bitten by the theatre bug and be hooked for life. Community theatre needs people with many different talents. Of course, we have people normally associated with theatre-artists, singers, dancers, costumers and actors. But we need many other people to have successful productions. We need people who are good at organization, shopping (who’s not good at shopping?), accounting, set design and construction, make-up and hair, and painting, to name a few. We can use the talents of the whole family because there is something for everyone. After all your hard work, everyone gets to come and watch the production they helped create. How cool is that? Along the way, everyone has made friends and contributed to the community’s quality of life. L C B E HU G We often hear how people today are becoming more isolated as they spend more time on their phones and computers. We are all guilty of spending too much time with our heads down instead of getting out in our community. As someone who has been involved in community theatre all my life, I have seen the transformation that comes over someone as they realize they love doing this. Encore Theatre Company is open to anyone with a desire to participate. All you have to do is come to a meeting and volunteer to help. We will fi nd your hidden talents. The amount of time you give is up to you. Any amount of time is appreciated. We meet the first Tuesday of every month at 6 pm at 1176 HWY 17 South (the former Wonder Bread building). For information, call me at 264-5060. I’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have. E Space for Encore Theater Donated by Biggs Cadillac 18 Albemarle TradewindsDecember2016 albemarletradewinds.com